Suzuki Kizashis used as unmarked police cars in Japan

[KuroNekko]

But what's up with the top hat?

I don't know for certain, but I believe it's merely a light bar height booster. I think it's just so the police lights are higher up and can be more visible in traffic.
Japanese police and ambulance sirens are much quieter than American ones and use a lower tone. They are far less obnoxious than what the Americans use (trust me, I hear them everyday in DC). For this reason, I think they value light bar visibility more than in the US and other countries.

The Japanese police and ambulances also use speakers and often speak to motorists asking them to yield or stop to let them pass. The police will also call out your vehicle when pulling you over. They will say things like "White Honda Fit, please pull over."
Interestingly, they often say "please" and "thank you" over the speakers. I'll take that any day over the screeching ambulance sirens I hear daily in downtown DC that are so loud, they actually hurt your ears.

[bootymac]

Interestingly, they often say "please" and "thank you" over the speakers.

It's stuff like this that makes me miss Japan so much. What an awesome culture

[paininthenuts]

Interestingly, they often say "please" and "thank you" over the speakers.

It's stuff like this that makes me miss Japan so much. What an awesome culture

Same in the UK. Our police are nearly always polite.

[paininthenuts]

I bet they don't use them for Police chases - because that would be a bit embarrassing!

You live in a country where a Kizi isn't a particularly fast car. In most other countries a car with a 2.4 engine and 180 BHP is classed as rather quick. Other than very expensive sports cars and M3's, in the Uk there isn't much to touch it.

You can't be serious? You've got plethora of midsize models to choose from in the UK with a lot better performance. A lot of them feature smaller turbo charged engines.

Of course those cars exist, but are quite rare by percentage. The majority of cars have either very small engines or deisels built for economy. Anybody that has been in my kizi always enjoys its power. I would say as an average 120 bhp for a car is about the norm. Remember, our fuel costs a lot more and our roads are smaller. You should also bare in mind we have speed cameras littered around all over the place

[KuroNekko]

Of course those cars exist, but are quite rare by percentage. The majority of cars have either very small engines or deisels built for economy. Anybody that has been in my kizi always enjoys its power. I would say as an average 120 bhp for a car is about the norm. Remember, our fuel costs a lot more and our roads are smaller. You should also bare in mind we have speed cameras littered around all over the place

The situation is similar in Japan and so I'm not surprised that a car like the Kizashi would be used in police duty. Police chases are also very rare in Japan for a number of reasons. First, there is simply not many places one can outrun the police in a densely populated place like Japan. Also, very few people would have a reason to run from the police over there. The nation isn't filled with people with arrest warrants, possessing illegal guns, drugs, or other reasons why people typically run from the police. Lastly, the police are dispersed all over the city in community-oriented "police boxes" so the police can deploy quickly from all over the city if needed.

Most importantly, violent street crime is rare in Japan so the need for the police to have specialized cars and equipment to outrun or outgun the criminals is not really necessary. The local cops carry revolvers over there and are joked to have cobwebs in them from the lack of use. In comparison, American cops carry high capacity semi-auto handguns with spare magazines readily available from their service belt. Many also have AR-15s and shotguns in their patrol cars. This is a necessity in the United States given that guns are widely available to the public and criminals have them. In Japan, very few have guns and those are licensed hunters. The vast majority of Japanese have absolutely no access to firearms.

For these reasons, the Japanese police don't need fast cars nor formidable service weapons to carry out their duties.

[murcod]

You live in a country where a Kizi isn't a particularly fast car. In most other countries a car with a 2.4 engine and 180 BHP is classed as rather quick. Other than very expensive sports cars and M3's, in the Uk there isn't much to touch it.

You can't be serious? You've got plethora of midsize models to choose from in the UK with a lot better performance. A lot of them feature smaller turbo charged engines.

Of course those cars exist, but are quite rare by percentage. The majority of cars have either very small engines or deisels built for economy. Anybody that has been in my kizi always enjoys its power. I would say as an average 120 bhp for a car is about the norm. Remember, our fuel costs a lot more and our roads are smaller. You should also bare in mind we have speed cameras littered around all over the place

You were saying that below an M3 nothing much would touch your Kizashi (for performance.) Clearly that's not the case!

Australia also has plenty of combined red light/ speed cameras, speed cameras, average speed point to point cameras, mobile speed cameras, police with laser speed guns. All for road safety of course - not revenue raising. It's got to be a safer place when you spend all your time watching your speedo and not what's happening on the road.

[KuroNekko]

You were saying that below an M3 nothing much would touch your Kizashi (for performance.) Clearly that's not the case!

In the US, any new BMW would outrun the Kizashi. Even all their 4 cylinder models are turbocharged. The most basic BMW you can get in the US is the 320i which has a 2.0 turbo engine making 180 HP. Though it's technically 5 less HP than my Kizashi, the Beemer runs 0 to 60 MPH faster.

Despite BMW's reputation as a luxury sports sedan maker, the models that appeal to me the most are ones like the 320i and 228i. Enthusiasts who are focused on the basics of driving dynamics say these cars are sublime to drive without getting ridiculously expensive with options which the Germans are notorious for. Keeping it pure and simple sounds appealing to me given BMWs are renown for their handling and feel.

[paininthenuts]

You were saying that below an M3 nothing much would touch your Kizashi (for performance.) Clearly that's not the case!

In the US, any new BMW would outrun the Kizashi. Even all their 4 cylinder models are turbocharged. The most basic BMW you can get in the US is the 320i which has a 2.0 turbo engine making 180 HP. Though it's technically 5 less HP than my Kizashi, the Beemer runs 0 to 60 MPH faster.

Despite BMW's reputation as a luxury sports sedan maker, the models that appeal to me the most are ones like the 320i and 228i. Enthusiasts who are focused on the basics of driving dynamics say these cars are sublime to drive without getting ridiculously expensive with options which the Germans are notorious for. Keeping it pure and simple sounds appealing to me given BMWs are renown for their handling and feel.

My neighbor owns a 320i and has commented how much faster the Kizashi is. The 228i is a different animal, but new ones are very rare. Most new BMW's are diesel.

To make my point, and we touched on it before. In the Uk the Kia Optima only comes with a 1.7 diesel unit, in the US it only comes with a 2,4 petrol unit. It doesn't take a genius to work out which one is faster, and which one more economical.

[paininthenuts]

You can't be serious? You've got plethora of midsize models to choose from in the UK

You were saying that below an M3 nothing much would touch your Kizashi (for performance.) Clearly that's not the case!

Australia also has plenty of combined red light/ speed cameras, speed cameras, average speed point to point cameras, mobile speed cameras, police with laser speed guns. All for road safety of course - not revenue raising. It's got to be a safer place when you spend all your time watching your speedo and not what's happening on the road.[/quote][/quote][/quote]

You clearly don't live in the UK. Like I said, of course these cars exist, it's just a point of proportion. I don't compare a Kizi with an M3, a BMW with whopping great V6 engine, or an evo. These cars cost two too three times that of a Kizi. I prefer to compare the Kizi with cars of a similar value. Even at the original cost of £23k there really isn't much in the UK that can touch it for performance, let alone refinement and looks. I paid £14k, and believe me that will get you nothing more than a slug on wheels where I come from. I can't think of another large car with a 2.4 straight 4 engine without a Turbo that would come close.

[Knightstruth]

The kiz doesn't compete with current gen luxury sports sedans but definitely does with older ones. If you were looking for a awd entry level luxury sports sedan in 2005/ 2006 the kiz competes nicely with them performance wise and as an entire package.
Being a model from 2010 the kiz doesn't really compete with current cars because it has not seen any enhancements. It does look better than some of those base models though.